Former Eatonville mayor, aides testify in voter fraud trial

Former Eatonville Mayor Anthony Grant took the stand Thursday to defend himself as the judge in the case dismissed several of the felony election fraud charges against him and two former campaign aides.

Orange-Osceola Circuit Judge Keith Carsten tossed out the charges for lack of evidence against the longtime elected official.

At day’s end, Grant had just three felony charges and two misdemeanors remaining. As Carsten read the acquittal of one of the charges, the former mayor clenched his fist and smiled in celebration.

Grant is still accused of felony voter fraud and other felony and misdemeanor absentee ballot offenses.

Much of his testimony revolved around the absentee ballot of Mildred McKnight, a woman who previously told jurors she had been living in a Rosemont apartment when she voted in the 2015 Eatonville election.

Grant said he didn’t know she was living there when he dropped off an absentee voter request form with his daughter prior to the election.

He had previously stopped by a home on People Street in Eatonville and McKnight’s mother told him where to find her.

The People Street address is listed on McKnight’s absentee-ballot request form.

Prosecutors say Grant should have known her legal residence wasn’t within Eatonville, but the former mayor contended he reviewed a list of registered voters which indicated she resided on People Street.

“I didn’t know she was staying there,” Grant said of the Rosemont apartment.

Grant testified he never asked if she lived at the apartment or how long she had been living there.

McKnight testified earlier in the week she spent most of her life in Eatonville, but lived in Rosemont in recent years after she was released from a nursing home. This led to further scrutiny from both sides on where she considered her home to be.

Grant said he did pay her, but all of the payments were made for regular campaign work such as passing out fliers and maintaining campaign signs. He said the last payment was made before absentee ballots were even distributed.

“We really campaigned hard,” Grant said. “Every week we had a different flier going out in the community.”

Nowells andthe second aide, James Randolph, each chose to testify as well.

Nowells, who still faces three felony charges and a misdemeanor, is accused of filling out the ballot of Latoya Jackson and Shafica Washington, as well as intimidating Jackson.

She’s also accused of accepting payment for distributing or collecting absentee ballots — a claim she denied.

The former aide said Jackson sent her a private message on Facebook asking Nowells to come by Jackson’s apartment because she received a ballot in the mail. Nowells said when she showed up days later, the ballot was already filled out.

“She had it sealed…and walked it out to me and handed it to me in my car,” Nowells said.

Nowells also said Washington gave her a completed ballot.

While on the stand, she said she felt threatened by a Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigator, who she said forced her to give a statement. “He told me if I didn’t cooperate, I would be arrested,” she alleged.

The investigator later testified and denied taking a statement or threatening Nowells.

The last defendant to testify was Randolph, who is charged with one felony count for marking or designating the ballot of Albert Gordon, who is Grant’s cousin.

Randolph said he was with Grant talking to voters when they came across Gordon. Gordon filled out his ballot on the back of Grant’s truck, Randolph said.

Randolph contended he was away from the vehicle at that time trying to get others to cast ballots.

Closing arguments in the case are expected Friday before the jury deliberates.

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